**4. Discussion**

While research has been conducted to examine the adequacy of ECDE infrastructure in developing contexts, and the influence of ECDE infrastructure on learning, studies on the most influential aspects of school quality are non-existent. The study reported here sought to fill this gap. We examined different elements of school and classroom infrastructure, as well as characteristics of ECDE teachers to understand their role as predictors of young children's school readiness.

Our study revealed that school facilities played a big role in influencing children's school readiness scores, supporting the findings of earlier studies [17]. Noteworthy is that the majority of schools sampled for this study had toilets, water sources and electricity, suggesting that efforts had been made to ensure that these were available for young learners. The finding that school facilities impact children's outcomes has implications on the need to improve the infrastructure in public preprimary schools in Kenya, so that provision of these facilities is harmonized across all schools.

Whereas the availability of textbooks had an impact on learners' school readiness scores, more than half of the preschools studied here did not have textbooks. School materials such as textbooks enable teachers to implement the curriculum according to their learners' needs, and it is imperative that these are made available within schools in order to facilitate early learning.

The multiple regression results suggest that teachers who have taught for a long time produce poorer school readiness scores in young children. In an analysis not reported here, teacher age and teaching experience were found to be highly correlated. It may be that older teachers rely on "old school" pedagogical methods which emphasize rote learning and memorization. Such methods are not suited to young children, hence do not enhance their school readiness. One earlier study has reported that the types of engagement that young children encounter in prekindergarten settings impact their learning outcomes, and those that focus on individual instruction tend to be more influential [47].

Whereas other studies have concluded that ECDE quality is better when teachers have higher levels of education [48, 49], our results, although only significant at the 10% level, suggested that the more the years of education a teacher had, the poorer the outcomes for children. A review of earlier studies suggested that low associations between ECDE teacher education and child outcomes could be related to the content and quality of higher education programs [35]. Another perspective that has been offered is that perhaps the manner in which teachers interact with children, and their ability to "effectively implement appropriate curriculums" have a bigger influence on child outcomes than their qualifications [50]. Moreover, teachers' willingness to apply what they have learned into practice may be influenced by individual, socialcultural and structural factors [51]. Based on the null findings on the associations

#### *Predictors of Early Childhood Developmental Outcomes: The Importance of Quality Early… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.112219*

between ECDE teacher education and child outcomes, we suggest, similarly to the views advanced by Early and colleagues [35], that improving teacher quality requires a broad range of professional development activities and specialized ECDE-focused training to improve pedagogical skills and interactions between ECDE teachers and children. Further, Siraj et al. [32], in their evaluation of an evidence-based in-service professional development program, found that it is critical to enhance teachers' professional knowledge, skills and attitudes in order to improve pedagogical quality and child development outcomes.

In the multiple regression results, school enrolment was only significant at the 10% level, which is in line with previous research that reports that group size is a more critical element of quality for children of younger ages (less than three years) than those of preschool age (four to five years). Surprisingly, ECDE teacher pre-service training, classroom resources and head teacher support were not significant predictors of children's school readiness in the regression model. These findings contrast those of other research which, for instance, reports that higher caregiver/teacher training [52], is associated with children's school readiness. The contrasting findings may be related to the differences across the contexts studied.

The results of the current study are important for researchers in the early childhood development field, as well as policymakers, as they highlight the aspects of structural quality that are most critical for school readiness in low-income settings. Promoting quality preschool programs has important implications for policy as it can lead to improved school readiness and later success for children in disadvantaged settings. Based on the results of our study, we recommend that in contexts with limited resources and competing budgetary needs, improving facilities in preprimary schools would go a long way in enhancing outcomes for preprimary school children. Apart from what happens within the school, it is also important to consider other environments within which the child interacts with others. As has been suggested by Rimm-Kaufman and Pianta [53], in order to improve school readiness, there is a need to leverage the resources within the home, school, neighborhood and community. One of the ways in which this can be done is by strengthening the connections between the home and school environments [54], as well as encouraging parents' involvement in school activities, especially among low-income families where such interventions are likely to have the greatest impact.

*Recent Perspectives on Preschool Education and Care*
